Cambodian court holds Dutch man on child pornography charges

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – A man from the Netherlands has been formally charged in a Cambodian court for taking nude photos of boys and possessing at least 1,300 pornographic pictures.

An official of the Siem Reap provincial court said Friday that Evrard Nicolas Sarot has been detained on child pornography charges. Production of child pornography is punishable by 5-10 years in prison, while the sentence for its sale or distribution is 10-20 years.

The court's action came after Sarot was arrested Tuesday in the northwestern province, home to the famous Angkor Wat temples, while photographing naked boys aged 11-15 years-old whom he had allegedly paid to strike erotic poses.

Police began investigating Sarot on the basis of information supplied by Action Pour Les Enfants, a non-governmental organization that combats child sex abuse.